Possible new rpod owner!
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Category: R-pod Discussion Forums
Forum Name: Introduce Yourself
Forum Discription: New Members - tell us about yourself and your r-pod
URL: http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=6919
Printed Date: 21 May 2025 at 7:01pm
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Topic: Possible new rpod owner!
Posted By: Laurie
Subject: Possible new rpod owner!
Date Posted: 05 Sep 2015 at 11:17pm
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Hello, All! I camp in Nov and Dec in New Mexico = very cold. Camped with a Jayco last year == very uncomfortable seating and bunk beds == no queen, so sold it and seriously considering the R178 Hood River edition. Concerned about post I read here about overall quality of rpod build. I'm sure there are lemons here and there, but does this forum concur that there is a serious quality issue? Has anyone camped in below freezing temps and how has the heater held up? I dry camp, so not worried about frozen pipes, but may end up with a frozen black water tank! Any guidance to rpod use in 10 degree conditions? Thanks, and glad for this forum! Laurie
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Replies:
Posted By: Leo B
Date Posted: 06 Sep 2015 at 7:59am
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Welcome to the group! We are on our second pod and feel that the r-pod quality is good, with an exception here and there. I do not feel the pod tanks are made for sub freezing weather. If you totally dry camped without using any tanks you would be ok. the tanks are exposed on the bottom and would be at risk of freezing. ------------- Leo & Melissa Bachand 2017 Ford F150 2021 Vista Cruiser 19 csk Previously owned 2015 Rpod 179 2010 Rpod 171 |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 06 Sep 2015 at 11:50am
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Welcome. The general consensus here is the build quality has gone down somewhat since the pods started being built in 2009. The really bad cases you read about here are the outliers. People don't flock to the net to talk about how great their car/house/appliance/camper is built, they mostly do it when they have a problem. We have an annual pod winter campout in central PA, and temps usually get down to 10 F. You can keep the inside of a non-slide pod warm with a small electric heater on low - all the extra insulation in the floor and straight sides helps a lot. However, as Leo said, they aren't built for 4-season camping. You must do it with all lines winterized and the tanks empty. The campout is at a campground with a heated bathroom. I take a jug of RV antifreeze to flush the toilet for any midnight run in the pod, but otherwise the campground bathroom is used. I'll take several gallons of fresh water for drinking but they stay inside the pod, and any waste water (brushing teeth) goes into a basin that gets thrown outside in the bushes. ------------- Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1723 - Pod instruction manual 
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Posted By: Podster
Date Posted: 08 Sep 2015 at 5:51am
On RPod Quality? It seams as if 90% of what I read about RPod issues are focused on new owners expecting perfection, and I agree, it's not an un-reasonable expectation. After paying $$$ for a product it should be perfect. Just like buying a new car or a house. The expectations are that the manufacturer will make things right and new owner expectations are very high. So, there is a lot of chatter about quality but at the end of the day the majority of it is minor cosmetic stuff. I have read about very few serious problems and those were fixed pretty easy. I think the most serious flaw that I recall is there have been a couple of PODs with axles that had to be replaced. That sounds really bad, but it's not really that big of a deal on a camp trailer, and a couple of trailers with leaks that were fixed with some chalking. Oh, and being from South Central Texas, the thought of camping in 10 degrees gives me the willies.  ------------- Cliff & Raelynn Ranger 4.0/178 (1/2 ton 5,800lb tow capacity) |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 08 Sep 2015 at 9:57am
I blame the car companies and John Deere for raising our expectations.  20 years ago you read (in magazines) about so many car build issues - surface rust, rattles and squeaks, gaps in panels, long engine break-in periods. 100,000 miles was considered very old. You rarely hear about any of that stuff now. Even engines are built with such precise tolerances and materials they don't need break-in and aren't affected as much if you don't let it warm up to full temperature before you start driving. And they last 250,000+ miles.
Small and large appliances, campers, even houses still aren't at that level yet. Many are much better. Some are close. But you still need to make a punch list of all the problems you find in that camper and new house you just spent $$$$ on. The whole-house generator I bought 10 years ago developed rust after just a few years, but my 1993 Caprice didn't develop rust until a few years ago, and my 2008 Prius still runs like it did on day 1. The car companies figured that stuff out long ago. I still use my 1986 John Deere lawn tractor that I've owned since 1987 - and abused in commercial service for 5 years. I think JD figured it out even before the car companies did. My 2 cents. ------------- Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1723 - Pod instruction manual
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